The Photo Detective is at it again. Just in time for the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, Maureen Taylor has published a book that will greatly help genealogists with ancestors who served in the conflict.
Finding the Civil War In Your Family Album is a unique resource for researching this time period in American History. While images of soldiers have often been discussed, Maureen focuses on images of the entire family: men, women, and children. The initial chapters discuss the types of photographs that were made during this time period and the use of photo albums at the time.
She then gets into fashions for all ages of individuals, uniforms, mourning customs, wedding outfits, and more. Later chapters focus on researching photographers (to help identify images) and suggestions for finding photographs of your ancestors in this time period. A bibliography of resources is also included.
The 192-page book is lavishly illustrated with 130 photographs. In addition to the illustrations in each chapter, there is a section on iconic images from the Civil War.
Anyone with ancestors in this time period will find this a valuable work. You can order a copy of the book from NEHGS for $24.95 at www.AmericanAncestors.org.